INFER
to form an opinion or decide that something is true based on the information you have
- Body language may be used to infer the real attitude of people.
- The writer isn’t attacking the current government, however, much of what he really thinks of them may be inferred from his latest book.
- We can infer that he knew about the the government’s secret dealings.
IMPLY
to suggest indirectly what you really think about something (positive or negative opinion)
- When the minister said that he wouldn’t rule out a tax increase, he implied that taxes might be raised.
- My ex-wife didn’t say she wasn’t coming to my wedding, but she implied she might be busy elsewhere that day.
- ‘I’m not sure it’s the best way to deal with this problem.’ ‘Are you implying that I’m wrong?’
INSINUATE
to suggest indirectly that something negative is true
- She insinuated that she was having an affair with her best friend’s husband.
- They insinuated that they didn’t like my husband.
- ‘You’ve got to be careful with John.’ ‘What are you insinuating?’
As you may see from the above examples, your word choice should depend on WHO is doing it.
When somebody is not direct with you, YOU can INFER what they really mean; you guess their real feelings/thoughts based on what they say or write.
When somebody is not direct with you, THEY can IMPLY or INSINUATE what they really mean. The difference between these two is that IMPLY may have both positive or negative connotations while INSINUATE only has negative connotations.
